Tuesday, October 29, 2013

I wrote the following post in hopes of winning a contest. I did not win, however I still wanted to share my Mom and Dad's budget success story because I think it rocks! ( I wrote it from my mom's perspective.)

I was at a friend’s house this week and she had a beautiful
gallery wall of her family.Pictures of
she and her husband, their children, grandchildren, weddings, and significant
life events lined the entry of her home.At the precipice of the wall, hung a plaque that read, “All because two
people fell in love.”Reflecting on
their story through this wall, I could see the impact that the thread of love
makes in creating beauty.

My budgeting story has had a similar impact in my
family.Our gallery wall of debts paid,
freedom found, early retirements taken, time spent with children and
grandchildren, people taken through Financial Peace University, vacations
spent, and volunteer hours counted is, “all because two people got on a
budget.”

In 2005, my daughter introduced me to Dave Ramsey and I’m so
glad she did.As a result of our
“gazelle intensity”, my husband and I paid off $107,000 in debt in 4 years and
3 months.We did this by:

Having
monthly budget meetings where we gave every penny a name and spent our money
accordingly.

Not using
credit cards.

Applying
unexpected income to the debt.

Using
cash for groceries, gas, and my hair (after all, if you look good, you feel
good).

Going on
planned vacations to celebrate milestones of debts paid

Using the
debt snowball (paying off the smallest debt first and once it was paid off,
applying that money to the next largest debt).

My husband and I have been debt free since 2009.In 2010, I was able to retire from my
job!Not having to work has freed us to
be able to serve our children, church family, and many others:

One
weekend a month we watch our daughter’s 5 children (ages 6 and under- including
a set of twins).This allows her and her
husband time to reconnect and breathe.

Our son
has twins (born on the same day but 2 years after my daughter’s twins), as
well, and my husband and I watch his children 2-3 days a week while he and his
wife are work.

We
started Financial Peace University at our church and have led over 20 groups.

We
counsel individuals and couples in the area of finances.

My mother
lives out of state and her health is diminishing.I have been able to travel to her home and
stay with her for extended periods of time.

I
volunteer at a gift shop in a hospital and have accumulated over 500 hours of
community service.

None of this would have been possible if I still had to
punch a clock.I am so thankful to be
out of debt.

If

you want to get out of debt and see changes in your life,
the key is to get on a budget.To start
a budget you will need to:

Write
down your income.

Write
down all of your expenses beginning with food, shelter, transportation, and
clothing.A Google search will lead you
to budget sheets and software.

Add in a
budget line for blow (fun) money.This
is a pre-determined amount of money that is set aside for you to spend any way
you like.

Write out
exactly where your money will go and spend it accordingly

Using online bill pay through my bank is a real asset to
sticking to my budget.When we get paid,
I immediately pay our bills, then I get cash and place it envelopes to keep me
accountable.

In November, I will turn 60.As a gift to myself and our children, my husband and I added a line to
our budget called Caine Family Cruise.As you can guess, we are going to take our 4 children, their spouses,
and our 8 grandchildren on a Disney Cruise.We saved for this trip for a year and it is completely paid for
in cash.I could not think of a better
birthday gift than to spend time with our loved ones.

Discipline in the area of budgeting bled over into
discipline in other parts of my life.In
2012, I started a weight loss program wherein I had to “budget” my
calories.I have lost 30 pounds and kept
it off for nearly 2 years. As you know, discipline begets discipline.

Getting on a budget has brought so much freedom to our
lives.On a daily basis, frames are
added to our gallery wall and our family tree is bursting with beauty.

If you ask Cynthia
how she is doing, she will say, "I'm blessed!"It is her joy to share life with her husband
of nearly 40 years, James.She enjoys
exercising, volunteering, shopping for herself and her grandchildren (with cash)
and going on annual Mother's Day vacations with her 3 daughters.

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About Me

I am very happy to be a stay-at-home wife and mom. What a joy to spend everyday with our first born daughter, Breezy, twins Rae Rae and Macky Boy, and Mason, our newest edition. All 4 debuted before our oldest was 4! Join me as I seek to honor God in all of this.